Final Blog

My Relationship with Technology and Making the right balance.

When I think about how I interact with technology, I see how important it become in my life. I engage with a bunch of devices from when I get up until I go to bed. While I'm grateful for the many advantages that technology has given me, I'm also realizing some of its drawbacks and the need to keep a balance.

The first thing that crosses my mind is whether or not I have a healthy relationship with technology. I think it's a bit bit of both. On the one hand, technology has made my life easier by enabling me to easily obtain information and talk with friends. On the other hand, I once in a while catch myself wasting far too much time online, especially on social media sites. This often causes me to procrastinate and get work done less efficiently. This leads me to think there is a lot of room for improvement in the amount of time I spend on technology. Even tho some of the time is being used for work. I once in a while notice when I'm mindlessly scrolling. We all need to be more careful about how we spend our time and keep technology from taking up all of our lives.

A lot depends on how we approach the issue of whether technology is educating us and making us smarter or deceiving. Even tho we have access to a huge database of knowledge, the internet also has its fair share of biases and false information. In order to use technology to its fullest, I think we need to be careful about the sources we use and double-check the information.

Sometimes I worry about how technology affects how I live my life. But I think recognizing these problems is the first step in dealing with them. We can make sure that technology continues to be helpful and productive by assessing our connection with it and working to make a balance.

Technology both has good and bad effects on the lives of my friends and family. On the plus side, it made communication more convenient and simple. Through a bunch of apps, we can talk to each other, exchange stories, and plan events. On top of this, technology has been a great tool for learning and entertainment, enabling us to access a wealth of data, games, and streaming services. On the negative side, I've seen that technology can occasionally limit the number of face-to-face interactions we have. During family and friend outings, people can lose themselves in their devices over actually talking to one another. This results in a feeling of isolation and stops the creation of new relationships. 

My relationships are hugely impacted by our technology in both good and bad ways. It helps me to keep in touch with family who is far away and to meet new people using communication methods like Xbox party chat. Finding a balance between online connections and face-to-face communication is important. I try to make an effort to balance in-person relationships and put my phone down when I'm with friends.

Analyzing our digital footprint is vital to understanding how we interact with technology. My name comes up in a simple Google search with a few social media profiles. I think my online presence is generally a good representation of who I am. But because what we share online can have long-lasting effects, It's important to think before we post.

When looking at my online presence, There are a few things that could be better. I should have more caution when posting and responding to comments on social media. It's necessary to consider how companies, universities, and even my girlfriend view social media presence.

After researching and looking into this, I took a few steps myself to improve how I come across online. First I took a look into my social media accounts by checking privacy settings and making sure that only those I know and trust can look at my posts. I also removed a few images that could be interpreted in a bad way. Second, II made sure my identity online is more credible online by updating my LinkedIn profile to reflect myself a little better. Also to showcase my work in game design, I made a personal website through Wix that people can use to view my work. Third, I'm now more careful about how I connect online by taking a second to reflect before I post or do anything else that could be viewed as bad. It's important to be conscious of the repercussions the internet can have on all of us. Finally, once in a while, I Google myself to see what information is available to the general public to keep track of my digital footprint. Then I'm able to take the steps needed to clean up my digital presence if it's needed.

To sum everything up,  I have a complicated connection with technology. It has both good and bad sides. While technology has definitely made my life easier and more connected, it also made problems like too much screen time and less face to face reactions. To keep a healthy relationship with technology, we need to make the right balance by being more mindful of how we use it and take steps to ensure that it remains a positive factor in our life.

Blog 9

     

        The 1948 Smith-Mundt Act was amended in 2012 to allow the dissemination of public diplomacy materials within the country. The content was only meant for foreign audiences prior to the change. The goal of the legislation is to bring the U.S. government's interactions with its domestic audience into the digital era.

The effects of the Smith-Mundt Modernization Act go beyond a straight definition. On the plus side, it allows the American government to interact with its citizens more openly by giving them access to the same information as overseas audiences. This might improve public perception of the government's diplomacy and foreign policy initiatives, potentially creating more confidence. The act also aids the government in stopping internal and international campaigns of misinformation and deception.

But there are worries that the act would encourage the distribution of government propaganda within the United States, possibly confusing the distinction between unbiased reporting and official messages. Some contend that this could lead to the government influencing public opinion, interrupting a democracy based on informed consent. On top of this since the public can mistake the government's public materials for an official story. Making it more challenging to distinguish fact from fiction, the spreading of incorrect information could be increased.

        It's important to know Smith-Mundt Modernization Act can have positive and negative effects on society as a whole. The government could promote a more informed and involved population by giving them access to public diplomacy materials. On the other hand, the act might accelerate the spreading of false information and the decline in trust in the government making it harder for the public to navigate an environment that is getting more and more complicated.

Certain social groups can be affected by the Mundt Modernization Act as well. For example, wealthy people may be more able to differentiate between normal news and government propaganda since they have access to a wider catalog of information sources. But, those with lesser incomes might have less access to a lot of information sources, making them more open to government propaganda. Different age groups may also be affected in different ways by the law. Older people may be more open to government messages, while younger people may be less open. Gender and sexual identification may not have as big of an impact on the act's outcomes, because information and potential propaganda can spread to all areas of our society to some extent.

The Act of 2012 might have an impact on my family, generation, and self by quite literally increasing our access to knowledge about government acts, potentially exposing us to government propaganda and misinformation without even knowing. Access to this information results in more informed discussions, but it may also cause misunderstanding among my generation. It is important to focus on media literacy and critical thinking to successfully travel this complicated landscape, find reliable sources, and keep an educated society.

Both positive and negative have resulted from the act. It can increase informed citizens and offer information about government actions, but it also has the potential of spreading false information and government propaganda.

Blog #11

In the more modern world, cancel culture has spread like crazy. Rejecting an individual or organization over offensive or inappropriate behaviors made by the. The cancel culture is a topic on which there is a lot of disagreement. While some see it as a tool for ensuring accountability and creating change. Others think it may be overdone and bad for the mental health of those affected.

The idea of cancel culture is to make sure that people are held accountable for their actions by helping them to be more careful with their words. The idea is that by being humiliated in front of others and receiving negative feedback, these people will grow and try to do better in the future. Those who support this strategy say that it has the potential to change the normal and result in a more equal society. But, a lot of those who are against cancel culture think that sometimes it can be extreme. They think that since everyone makes mistakes it's unreasonable to do this to someone for a single mistake.

Tons of well-known people, like J.K. Rowling, James Charles, and Kanye West, have direct experience with cancel culture. Even companies like Gucci and Balenciaga have experienced criticism for their ads. In the case of Balenciaga, the company became under fire for using young children with teddy bears dressed in bondage clothes with a handbag on documents about a case involving child pornography in marketing materials. On top of this, there were attacks on those who wore clothes from these brands.

Holding people and companies responsible for actions and talking about harmful behavior is important. But cancel culture's big approach might not be the best plan to solve this. It is important to consider serious problems like the possibility of injury and the elimination of free speech. Instead of making a person look like a villain, a reaction that promotes development and change might be a better way of creating change.